Original Article Medical Journal of Islamic World Academy of Sciences General Surgery doi: 10.5505/ias.2019.15821 2019;27(3): 67-70 Should concurrent prophylactic cholecystectomy be performed in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy? Birkan BİRBEN1, Gökhan Akkurt1, Mesut TEZ2, Barış Doğu YILDIZ1 1 Ankara City Hospital, Department of General Surgery, Ankara, Turkey 2 SBU Ankara Research and Training Hospital, Department of General Surgery, Ankara, Turkey Correspondence Gökhan AKKURT Ankara Şehir Hastanesi, Genel Cerrahi Bölümü, Ankara, Türkiye e-mail: [email protected] ABSTRACT The causes of gallstone formation include rapid gain or loss of weight. Not all gallstones become symptomatic. Concurrent cholecystectomy in sleeve gastrectomy remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate whether concurrent cholecystectomy should be performed after sleeve gastrectomy (SG). A total of 268 patients with normal preoperative gallbladder ultrasonography findings, who underwent laparoscopic SG in Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital between 2011 and 2018, were retrospectively examined. The data collected from 40 patients with symptomatic cholelithiasis during the postoperative follow-up were analyzed. Forty patients [32(80%) female and 8 (20%) male] developed symptomatic cholelithiasis after an average of 10.65 ± 5.98 months of SG and underwent surgery. The mean age of the patients was 38 ± 11 years. The mean body mass index before SG was 48.15 ± 5.61. The mean percentage of excess weight loss was 69.85 ± 17.4 at the time the patients underwent cholecystectomy. As the percentage of excess weight loss increased, the time to the development of postoperative symptomatic cholelithiasis decreased, and this relationship was statistically significant (R = 0.435, P = 0.005). Prophylactic cholecystectomy need not be performed concurrently with SG in patients without preoperative symptomatic gallstones. The reason is that laparoscopic cholecystectomy can be safely performed in the postbariatric surgery period, and the risk of symptomatic gallstone formation depends on individual risk factors. Key words: Cholelithiasis, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, prophylactic cholecystectomy INTRODUCTION In Turkey, the prevalence of gallbladder stones mittee of the Ankara Numune Training and Research in the normal population was reported to be 7.5% Hospital (approval number: E-19-2576), patients who in the last two decades [1]. Previous studies showed underwent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) at that the prevalence of these stones in obese patients the same hospital between 2011 and 2018 were ret- increases to 21% [2]. Rapid weight gain and certain rospectively analyzed. The patients with gallbladder conditions causing rapid weight loss, such as bariat- stones, polyps, or gallbladder sludge on preopera- ric surgery, are among the risk factors for gallbladder tive ultrasonography and those without preoperative stone formation [3]. Concurrent prophylactic chole- images were excluded from the study. A total of 268 cystectomy in sleeve gastrectomy (SG) remains con- patients with normal preoperative gallbladder ultra- troversial. This study aimed to investigate whether sonography findings were included in this study. Of concurrent prophylactic cholecystectomy should be these patients, 40 with symptomatic cholelithiasis performed after SG. were evaluated in terms of demographic characteris- tics, preoperative body mass index (BMI), percentage MATERIAL AND METHODS of excess weight loss (EWL), symptoms, time between Patient data two operations, complications associated with choleli- After obtaining approval from the ethics com- thiasis, operation type, and comorbidities. 67 68 Birben, Akkurt, Tez, Yıldız Statistical analysis titis developed in one patient (2.5%), and acute cho- The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences lecystitis, pancreatitis, and choledocholithiasis com- (SPSS) 15.0 (SPSS Inc., IL, USA) statistics software was plications in another patient (2.5%) who underwent used for statistical analysis. The Fisher exact test was endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography used to compare nominal values because of the non- (ERCP). The operation was completed laparoscopi- parametric distribution pattern among the groups. The cally in 38 (95%) patients. One patient (2.5%) refused Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare the numer- surgery. In another patient (2.5%), laparoscopy was ical values. The correlation between parameters was converted into open surgery. This was the same pa- calculated using the Pearson correlation test. A P value tient who underwent ERCP due to complications. less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Diabetes mellitus (DM) was present in 10 patients (25%). The relationship between the presence of DM RESUlts and the time to the development of symptomatic Symptomatic cholelithiasis developed in 40 [32 cholelithiasis after SG was not statistically significant (80%) female and 8 (20%) male] of the 268 patients (P = 0.104). As the percentage of EWL increased, the with normal preoperative gallbladder ultrasonogra- time to the postoperative development of symptom- phy findings after an average of 10.65 ± 5.98 months atic cholelithiasis decreased, and this relationship of SG. These patients underwent surgery. The analy- was statistically significant (R = 0.435 and P = 0.005). sis of these patients is given in Table 1. The mean age However, the relationship between BMI before SG was 38 ± 11 years. The mean BMI before SG was 48.15 and the time to the postoperative development of ± 5.61. At the time of cholecystectomy, the mean symptomatic cholelithiasis was not statistically sig- EWL percentage was 69.85 ± 17.14. Acute cholecys- nificant (R = –0.028, P = 0.863). Table 1 Analysis of the patients who developed symptomatic cholelithiasis in the postoperative period Laparoscopic sleeve Postoperative symptomatic P value gastrectomy cholelithiasis Number of patients 268 40 (14.9%) Mean age 38 ± 11 Sex (male/female) 8/32 Preoperative BMI 48.15 ± 5.61 0.863 Time between the two operations (months) 10.65 ± 5.98 Excess weight loss percentage/mean 69.85 ± 17.14 0.005 Comorbidities (diabetes mellitus %) 10/40 (25%) 0.104 Minor (biliary colic) 38 (95%) Acute cholecystitis 1 (2.5%) Symptoms Acute cholecystitis, pancreatitis, and 1 (2.5%) choledocholithiasis Laparoscopic 38 (95%) Type of surgery Converted into open surgery 1 (2.5%) Refused surgery 1 (2.5%) BMI, Body mass index. Medical Journal of Islamic World Academy of Sciences 2019; 27(3): 67-70 Prophylactic cholecystectomy in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy 69 DISCUSSION Tustumi et al. determined that the risk of compli- cations was higher in postbariatric laparoscopic cho- Although prophylactic cholecystectomy is not lecystectomies than in cholecystectomy undertaken performed by most bariatric surgeons, it remains an concurrently with bariatric surgery [8]. Juo et al. found issue that needs to be clarified. The present study was no difference between cholecystectomies performed valuable in terms of its contributions to the literature. concurrently with bariatric surgery and after bariatric In this study, symptomatic cholelithiasis developed surgery in terms of specific complications associated in 14.9% of patients after an average of 10.65 ± 5.98 with cholecystectomy. Therefore, the need for prophy- months of SG. Manatsathit et al. reported that chole- lactic cholecystectomy should be evaluated consider- lithiasis occurred in 95.8% of the patients within the ing individual risk factors [9]. In this study, conversion first 18 months after SG, and 22.9% of these cases from laparoscopic into open surgery was required in had symptomatic cholelithiasis [4]. In a similar study, only one patient with symptomatic cholelithiasis, while Coupaye et al. found that after LSG, 12% of the pa- the remaining 97.5% of the patients underwent LSG. tients developed symptomatic cholelithiasis, most in No complications were found in any of the patients. the first postoperative year [5]. In another study, Li et al. observed that symptomatic cholelithiasis devel- Although the prevalence of regional cholelithia- oped in 5.7% of the patients after LSG, and routine sis in Turkey was reported to be around 7.5% in the prophylactic cholecystectomy was not recommended last two decades, this rate was considered to be even [6]. Altieri et al. reported the rate of cholecystectomy higher due to the limited number of prevalence stud- as 10.1% after SG. It was noted that common bile duct ies and increasing obesity throughout the country. injuries occurred at a high rate (0.12%) in patients who Therefore, the rate of symptomatic cholelithiasis oc- underwent cholecystectomy after bariatric surgery. currence after LSG (14.9%) was not much higher than Previous studies suggested that the risks and benefits the real prevalence of this condition in the normal of prophylactic cholecystectomy should be consid- population in Turkey as observed in this study. ered during surgical decision-making [7]. This study had a limitation. The number of pa- In this study, no statistical relationship existed tients with cholelithiasis in this cohort was low. The between the presence of DM and the time to the de- prevalence of cholelithiasis should be investigated in velopment of symptomatic cholelithiasis after LSG. a larger cohort of patients with SG. In contrast, Manatsathit et al. found that the preva- lence of DM in the postoperative cholelithiasis group ConCLUSIONS was significantly lower [4]. In the present study, the